How long to keep business records in Canada

The short answer is six years. The CRA says you must keep all required records and supporting documents for six years from the end of the last tax year they relate to.

The longer answer is in that last phrase. The clock doesn't start when you get the receipt. It starts at the end of the tax year the receipt belongs to, and some records have a different clock, or no end date at all.

When the six years start

The tax year is:

• the calendar year for an individual, which includes a sole proprietor
• the fiscal period for a corporation

So:

• A sole proprietor's receipt dated March 3, 2026 belongs to the 2026 tax year, which ends December 31, 2026. Keep it until at least December 31, 2032.
• A corporation with a June 30 year-end gets an invoice on August 14, 2025. That falls in the fiscal year ending June 30, 2026, so keep it until at least June 30, 2032.

The "last tax year they relate to" part matters for anything that spans years. A five-year equipment lease signed in 2026 relates to every year through 2031, so its six years start running at the end of 2031, not 2026.

The same six-year rule applies under the Income Tax Act, the Excise Tax Act (which covers GST/HST), the Employment Insurance Act and the Canada Pension Plan. Your income tax, GST/HST and payroll records all run on the same clock.

The exceptions

The CRA lists situations where the period is different:

• You filed late. If you file an income tax return late, keep the records for six years from the date you filed it, not from the end of the year.
• You objected or appealed. Keep everything needed until the latest of: the objection or appeal is resolved, the deadline for any further appeal has passed, or the normal six years are up.
• Long-term property and ownership records. Records about buying and selling long-term property, the share registry, and other history that would matter on a sale, liquidation or wind-up of the business are kept indefinitely.
• The CRA asks you to keep them longer. It will tell you in person or by registered mail.
• An unincorporated business closes. Keep its records for six years from the end of the tax year it ended in.
• A corporation is dissolved. Keep its records for two years after the dissolution date.
• An unfiled GST/HST return. If you never filed a return for a period that ended more than six years ago, you still have to file it and keep the records that support it.

The property rule catches people out. If you bought a building or a piece of equipment in 2015 and still own it, the purchase documents aren't six years old in any sense that counts. You'll need them to work out capital cost allowance and the gain or loss when you sell.

What counts as a record

More than receipts. The CRA's list of what records are includes ledgers and journals, financial statements, income tax and GST/HST returns, sales invoices, purchase receipts, contracts, bank deposit slips, bank statements, cancelled cheques, cash register slips, credit card receipts, work orders, delivery slips, logbooks, emails, and all correspondence that supports your transactions.

For a small business, the practical list is:

• Sales: every invoice you issue, plus till or payment-processor reports
• Purchases: receipts and supplier invoices
• Banking: statements for every business account and card
• Returns: income tax returns, GST/HST returns, and the working papers behind them
• Vehicle log, if you claim vehicle expenses
• Payroll, if you have employees: hours, deductions, TD1 forms and the slips you issued, per the CRA's payroll records page
• Asset purchases, kept for as long as you own the asset and past that

Online sales count too. If you sell through a platform or payment processor, the CRA says you're responsible for keeping the transaction records even if the third party keeps its own, since it may not keep them as long as the law requires. Download your reports. Don't rely on the dashboard being there in 2032.

Can you keep receipts as photos?

Yes, with conditions. The CRA accepts electronic images of paper documents if the image:

• is an accurate reproduction, meant to take the place of the paper
• gives the same information as the paper
• doesn't lose significant details to poor resolution, tone or colour

If you image your records to the national standard (CAN/CGSB 72.34), the images become the permanent record and you can destroy the paper. If you can't meet that standard, the CRA says to keep the originals. When in doubt, it suggests getting legal advice before you shred.

Two more rules:

• Records that start out electronic stay electronic. A PDF invoice emailed to you has to be kept in a readable electronic format, even if you've also printed it.
• Back them up. The CRA recommends keeping backups, preferably at a site in Canada other than your business location, and making sure they stay readable after you change systems.

Where you have to keep them

At your place of business or your home in Canada, unless the CRA gives you written permission to keep them elsewhere. Records kept outside Canada and accessed electronically from here don't count as kept in Canada. The CRA may give permission for electronic records on servers abroad, on conditions. If you use a cloud service, ask where the data sits.

Records also have to be in English or French, or a mix of both.

Destroying records early

You can't just decide to. You need the CRA's written permission first, by filing Form T137, Request for Destruction of Records, or by writing to your tax services office. The CRA warns that destroying records without permission can lead to prosecution.

The CRA's permission covers only records required under the laws it administers. It can't approve destroying records you have to keep under other federal, provincial, territorial or municipal laws.

What happens if you don't have them

If the CRA can't work out your income from your records, its auditors use other methods to estimate it, and claims your records don't support can be disallowed. A missing receipt can cost you the deduction and the input tax credit. A missing year of records can cost you a lot more than that.

A simple system

• One folder per tax year, with sub-folders for sales, purchases, bank, returns and payroll.
• Snap receipts the day you get them. Thermal till receipts fade, and a blank one supports nothing.
• Download statements monthly, while your bank still shows them online.
• A separate "permanent" folder for asset purchases, leases, incorporation documents and the share register.
• Each January, check the oldest year. Records for a tax year that ended more than six years ago, with no open audit, objection or late filing, can usually go. Asset and ownership records stay.

How Spark Books helps

Spark Books keeps the transaction side organized. Upload your bank and card statements, photograph a receipt, and it's matched to the transaction it paid for, so the document and the entry stay together. It's free, and there's no card to sign up. Keep your own backup of anything you need for the full retention period. The rules above apply whatever software you use.